Dr Philip Boyes
@philipjboyes.bsky.social
Archaeologist and linguist working on the Bronze and Iron Age Levant. Research Associate with the VIEWS Project at the University of Cambridge. Formerly with the CREWS Project. Geek.
Bedtime got away from us a bit last night, and it started so well.
7 pm: Baby fell asleep instantly when I placed her in the cot.
10 pm: Baby is wide awake, not in bed and armed.
7 pm: Baby fell asleep instantly when I placed her in the cot.
10 pm: Baby is wide awake, not in bed and armed.
November 27, 2025 at 4:11 AM
Bedtime got away from us a bit last night, and it started so well.
7 pm: Baby fell asleep instantly when I placed her in the cot.
10 pm: Baby is wide awake, not in bed and armed.
7 pm: Baby fell asleep instantly when I placed her in the cot.
10 pm: Baby is wide awake, not in bed and armed.
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
I feel you, ancient Mongolian ceramic hedgehog. I feel you.
November 26, 2025 at 10:17 AM
I feel you, ancient Mongolian ceramic hedgehog. I feel you.
Someone do For All Mankind only it's the British who get to the moon first.
(There's actually a Doctor Who novel with this concept. It's by Chris Bulis, who isn't great, but I remember liking it. Possibly just because it had a Boyes in it).
(There's actually a Doctor Who novel with this concept. It's by Chris Bulis, who isn't great, but I remember liking it. Possibly just because it had a Boyes in it).
real Lunar spacesuit designed by the British interplanetary society.
I think it would be perfect for a comic, (it even has a cape!!!!)
I think it would be perfect for a comic, (it even has a cape!!!!)
November 26, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Someone do For All Mankind only it's the British who get to the moon first.
(There's actually a Doctor Who novel with this concept. It's by Chris Bulis, who isn't great, but I remember liking it. Possibly just because it had a Boyes in it).
(There's actually a Doctor Who novel with this concept. It's by Chris Bulis, who isn't great, but I remember liking it. Possibly just because it had a Boyes in it).
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
Every spec fic take on the British: oh they all want to run about looking like medieval knights
Me: nonsense
Actual British futurism:
Me: nonsense
Actual British futurism:
real Lunar spacesuit designed by the British interplanetary society.
I think it would be perfect for a comic, (it even has a cape!!!!)
I think it would be perfect for a comic, (it even has a cape!!!!)
November 26, 2025 at 2:19 PM
Every spec fic take on the British: oh they all want to run about looking like medieval knights
Me: nonsense
Actual British futurism:
Me: nonsense
Actual British futurism:
In more wholesome baby laughing news, we just put Balamory on for her for the first time in a while. She's now entranced for the whole episode and particularly loves Miss Hoolie. Big grins and laughs every time she speaks to camera.
Just had a choking fit, which the baby thought was hilarious. Good to know that if I meet an ignominious end choking on a Fruit Gum, the last thing I see will be my daughter laughing at me.
November 25, 2025 at 6:31 PM
In more wholesome baby laughing news, we just put Balamory on for her for the first time in a while. She's now entranced for the whole episode and particularly loves Miss Hoolie. Big grins and laughs every time she speaks to camera.
Just had a choking fit, which the baby thought was hilarious. Good to know that if I meet an ignominious end choking on a Fruit Gum, the last thing I see will be my daughter laughing at me.
November 25, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Just had a choking fit, which the baby thought was hilarious. Good to know that if I meet an ignominious end choking on a Fruit Gum, the last thing I see will be my daughter laughing at me.
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
Morning.
Have you seen a lot of action?
Have you ever held your DCC controller up in the air and gone "aaaaargh!"?
Is it true that there is a wagon on your layout that if you derail it, it will blow up?
Do you want anything from the shop?
Well, then this Rapido Recommends is for you!
Have you seen a lot of action?
Have you ever held your DCC controller up in the air and gone "aaaaargh!"?
Is it true that there is a wagon on your layout that if you derail it, it will blow up?
Do you want anything from the shop?
Well, then this Rapido Recommends is for you!
November 25, 2025 at 8:30 AM
Morning.
Have you seen a lot of action?
Have you ever held your DCC controller up in the air and gone "aaaaargh!"?
Is it true that there is a wagon on your layout that if you derail it, it will blow up?
Do you want anything from the shop?
Well, then this Rapido Recommends is for you!
Have you seen a lot of action?
Have you ever held your DCC controller up in the air and gone "aaaaargh!"?
Is it true that there is a wagon on your layout that if you derail it, it will blow up?
Do you want anything from the shop?
Well, then this Rapido Recommends is for you!
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
This should really be on a T-shirt.
November 24, 2025 at 7:12 PM
This should really be on a T-shirt.
I don't get a lot of free time for this sort of thing at the moment but I'm happy with this little experiment: designing and 3D printing a custom Lego arch. Yes it's technically cheating but it's a bigger version of an existing part so Lego could create it at any point if they felt they needed it.
November 23, 2025 at 8:05 PM
I don't get a lot of free time for this sort of thing at the moment but I'm happy with this little experiment: designing and 3D printing a custom Lego arch. Yes it's technically cheating but it's a bigger version of an existing part so Lego could create it at any point if they felt they needed it.
Well, I can tick off 'peer reviewer referred me to my own work' from my academic bucket list.
Though there is of course the possibility that the reviewer has worked out exactly who I am and is suggesting I made the point better elsewhere.
Though there is of course the possibility that the reviewer has worked out exactly who I am and is suggesting I made the point better elsewhere.
November 22, 2025 at 6:34 AM
Well, I can tick off 'peer reviewer referred me to my own work' from my academic bucket list.
Though there is of course the possibility that the reviewer has worked out exactly who I am and is suggesting I made the point better elsewhere.
Though there is of course the possibility that the reviewer has worked out exactly who I am and is suggesting I made the point better elsewhere.
Eating octopus, like we aren't in Cambridgeshire in late November.
November 21, 2025 at 6:36 PM
Eating octopus, like we aren't in Cambridgeshire in late November.
Baby swinging her head from side to side as she slops forth great ropes of puke. Like a mighty milk-dragon.
November 21, 2025 at 2:17 PM
Baby swinging her head from side to side as she slops forth great ropes of puke. Like a mighty milk-dragon.
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
Appendix: Here are the two 'fart' roots in question (*pesd- 'leise furzen; fart quietly'; *perd- 'laut furzen; fart loudly) as given in the Lexicon der Indogermanischen Verben (2e) with their cognates.
November 21, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Appendix: Here are the two 'fart' roots in question (*pesd- 'leise furzen; fart quietly'; *perd- 'laut furzen; fart loudly) as given in the Lexicon der Indogermanischen Verben (2e) with their cognates.
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
We can reconstruct two Proto-Indo-European verbal roots meaning 'to fart' but still cannot reconstruct a common PIE word for 'finger'.
Man, everything is so bleak, anyone got a fun fact or little bit of trivia they want to share
November 21, 2025 at 11:56 AM
We can reconstruct two Proto-Indo-European verbal roots meaning 'to fart' but still cannot reconstruct a common PIE word for 'finger'.
From now on, as far as I'm concerned, the Singularity is the point at which humanity perfectly mechanises the production of parquet flooring.
November 21, 2025 at 7:40 AM
From now on, as far as I'm concerned, the Singularity is the point at which humanity perfectly mechanises the production of parquet flooring.
The ProQuest Ebook interface you have to use to read some of the books in the UL collection really is abysmal. Never mind the fact that it strips out all the page numbers and formatting; there's barely any difference between the smallest and largest font size, with the latter being about 8 pt.
November 21, 2025 at 5:41 AM
The ProQuest Ebook interface you have to use to read some of the books in the UL collection really is abysmal. Never mind the fact that it strips out all the page numbers and formatting; there's barely any difference between the smallest and largest font size, with the latter being about 8 pt.
I'd just like to record how much I dislike that AI advert with the incredibly posh farmer and his creepily Aryan family.
November 20, 2025 at 8:10 PM
I'd just like to record how much I dislike that AI advert with the incredibly posh farmer and his creepily Aryan family.
World leaders call on Pope to address disturbing allegations of past links with Catholicism.
November 20, 2025 at 12:18 PM
World leaders call on Pope to address disturbing allegations of past links with Catholicism.
Scarf weather! In which I'm reminded that I really need to get a non-burgundy scarf to go with the big burgundy coat I got last year. It's all looking a bit Season 18 at the moment...
November 19, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Scarf weather! In which I'm reminded that I really need to get a non-burgundy scarf to go with the big burgundy coat I got last year. It's all looking a bit Season 18 at the moment...
In my day this was called 'Doctor Who and the Sea Devils'. Political correctness gone mad.
November 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
In my day this was called 'Doctor Who and the Sea Devils'. Political correctness gone mad.
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
Spiritually, this is a 1980s arcade game character.
Part 102 of 200 in historically interesting things
Depictions of Medjed from 950s BCE. Medjed The Smiter is an ancient Egyptian god who shoots rays of light from his eyes, and who goes round about heaven robed in the flame of his mouth, commanding Hāpi (Nile god), but remaining himself unseen
Depictions of Medjed from 950s BCE. Medjed The Smiter is an ancient Egyptian god who shoots rays of light from his eyes, and who goes round about heaven robed in the flame of his mouth, commanding Hāpi (Nile god), but remaining himself unseen
November 18, 2025 at 3:18 AM
Spiritually, this is a 1980s arcade game character.
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
November 17, 2025 at 9:22 AM
I guess the animation's really reached a level of popularity - I've started getting people taking the time to leave snide comments. What an odd thing to do on a thing some random person has done for fun and made available for free. It's not like I'm not aware of the imperfections!
November 16, 2025 at 3:36 AM
I guess the animation's really reached a level of popularity - I've started getting people taking the time to leave snide comments. What an odd thing to do on a thing some random person has done for fun and made available for free. It's not like I'm not aware of the imperfections!
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
Just taking a moment to appreciate these wonderful pictures of Tom Baker with @louisejameson.bsky.social & friends at his MBE investiture this week. How does he get *more* like the Doctor the older he gets? #TomBaker MBE - it's about time.🧣🏅
November 15, 2025 at 11:46 AM
Just taking a moment to appreciate these wonderful pictures of Tom Baker with @louisejameson.bsky.social & friends at his MBE investiture this week. How does he get *more* like the Doctor the older he gets? #TomBaker MBE - it's about time.🧣🏅
Reposted by Dr Philip Boyes
I've spent the last 3 years animating episode 1 of the Daleks' Master Plan for its 60th anniversary today! Yes, we had a slight technical hitch when I realised I'd uploaded the wrong version of the file, but we're good now!
And you might want to keep watching to the very end..
youtu.be/2--OWFrTXUI
And you might want to keep watching to the very end..
youtu.be/2--OWFrTXUI
Daleks' Master Plan - The Nightmare Begins Animation. Part 1
YouTube video by JanjyGiggins
youtu.be
November 13, 2025 at 6:28 PM
I've spent the last 3 years animating episode 1 of the Daleks' Master Plan for its 60th anniversary today! Yes, we had a slight technical hitch when I realised I'd uploaded the wrong version of the file, but we're good now!
And you might want to keep watching to the very end..
youtu.be/2--OWFrTXUI
And you might want to keep watching to the very end..
youtu.be/2--OWFrTXUI